PA: 2 Palestinian prisoners in critical condition

RAMALLAH (Ma’an) -- Two Palestinian prisoners are in critical condition in Israeli hospitals, the Palestinian Authority's ministry of prisoners announced Saturday.

The conditions of Riyad al-Amour and Muhammad al-Taj are deteriorating rapidly, according to a report from the ministry.

The report said al-Amour, 42, who is held in Assaf Harofeh medical center near Tel Aviv, needs urgent open-heart surgery which cannot be performed due to weak coronary muscles. Al-Amour slips into comas at least five times a day and suffers from exhaustion and incontinence.

The detainee sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen in the past, and parts of internal organs had to be removed leading to the deteriorating conditions and weak coronary muscles.

Al-Amour is from Tuqu village east of Bethlehem. He was arrested on May 4, 2002 and sentenced to 11 life terms for involvement in the resistance.

The other prisoner, Mohammad al-Taj, 42, from Tubas, suffers from reduced blood oxygen levels. He had to be transferred to Israel's Kfar Sava Hospital 10 days earlier to get treatment.

The ministry’s attorney Sherine Iraqi has declared that the two prisoners' conditions are deteriorating badly. In a hearing scheduled for Oct. 18, Iraqi will ask for al-Taj's immediate release.

Al-Taj was originally arrested on Nov. 19, 2003 and received a 14-year sentence. He was one of the participants in the mass hunger strike during April and March.

Meanwhile in a letter received by the ministry, two prisoners suffering from advanced cancer called on President Mahmoud Abbas and rights groups to intervene to help them attain better treatment.

Rafat Turkman and Fuaz Sabaa, who are being held in Israel's Gilboa and Majedo jails, have received treatment in Israeli hospitals but are receiving only painkillers and want to seek treatment abroad.

Eighteen prisoners in Israel's jails are suffering from cancer, the report added.